Chosen Solution

Ok, so here goes - I have a OG Xbox1 w/2 OG Controllers and 2 2nd gen controllers. Having issues pairing controllers and maintaining connections - but wait - this isn’t the usual After the latest 3step long critical mass upgrade my box forcibly installed - is when this became an issue. It isn’t the batteries, nor the controllers themselves (proven on another xbox in the same home in the same room 5ft away) Pairing button rarely works to cause xbox emblem to flash but once in a while yes - but even if it pairs the connections “freezes” (xbox still functional - can control with my cell phone and the app) I’ve already performed 2 factory resets including a full wipe - no change I’ve heard a rumor that the wifi card is used to connect to the controllers - but i am not having wifi issues (wifi works excellent) - is there any truth to this controller board having dual function? - If so, I will be happy to buy and replace this - just don’t want to waste time and money replacing an otherwise perfectly working WiFi-NIC card… The strangest thing is that once it “locks out the controllers” even plugging them in via usb doesn’t work but the usb ports work (with other peripherals). Soft Reboots (holding the xbox emblem on the console for 60+sec) NEVER work - sometimes I can get a controller(s) to reconnect temporarily after pulling power from the external power supply and waiting 2-3mins (tried longer -no difference) but that’s it… Otherwise, I need to pull the batteries and connect exclusively by USB and perform a cold boot (via the power supply 2-3m discharge cycle) and then it works solidly… HELP - I cannot get a hold or speak to anyone at xbox or microsoft - they refuse to allow a chat or callback for anything and the #s listed now have recorded msgs telling you to use the online system to request a callback and hang up on you with no other options…

Ok, So for the benefit of others who may encounter this issue - here’s what I’ve learned since I posted this question… I took apart the console - removed the wireless board completely (noticed that the antenna wire connected to the wifi board was loose - popped it off and reattached / reseated it - when i later reassembled it)

The ribbon wire that is tied to the front panel touch button, dvd eject and pairing buttons was NOT seated correctly - i disconnected it and reattached it properly being sure to unlock the connector and relock the connector as i did this

After these two steps (and while i was at it a quick cleaning of the accumulated dust in the unit) i reassembled it and it worked flawlessly…

Now, what still doesn’t make any sense is why after the update this suddenly became an issue - i hadn’t moved the unit or anything like that to have “jarred” these things loose and it has been over 2yrs since i had the cover off to do a wrap job on the front panel and top panel - plenty of use without issue over this time - just doesn’t make sense - i can tell you that my external hard drive died after disconnecting it from the console - when i reattached it - it was no longer recognized despite just successfully moving a game from internal storage to the external storage. Verified it was dead on another machine and on a laptop - another very strange occurance…

Hope this tutorial helps someone else - this thing drove me nuts!!!